Once more I need advice! Being a woman alone, I am now wondering if this car will be simply too much for me to enjoy with my limited mechanical knowledge.

While driving with no music one day, a rare event, I heard a humming in the car. Took it to the dealer to be checked out and was told my back tires are "shot" and both front tires have broken belts in them. Now I fully expected replacing the tires but not this soon, not after five months! It had only 7500 miles on it when I bought it and I predominatly drive 75-100 miles a day commuting to work on paved roads/interstate. So is this normal?

I read the manual and can not find a tire warranty booklet refered to in the manual. I need all the advice I can get at this point, I am shell shocked. It hasn't even been Spring long enough for me to enjoy cruising in it. Did I make a mistake and this car is only fun for those with unlimited mechanical knowledge/funds/time to constantly monitor this baby? I do love it though.

Seger fan

 

I love Seger too!! Your tire wear is "spot on" for this vehicle. I replaced mine at 20,000 miles. Remember this is a performance tire ( translation..more "sticky" ) and they always wear out faster than regular passenger car tires. Also, be prepared to spend more for the tires ( I spent $1200.00 for four Bridgestone Potenzas which I highly recommend). It's a great car, don't be discouraged!

 

Humming from the back of the car could be caused by some cupping of the rear tires. I had this problem and was wearing the rear tires badly in the inside edge. What he said about the front tires sounds like BS. How does the tread look on all four tires? does the tread depth look even accross the tires? Feel the edge of the tires and see if you detect any flat spots. There are wear bars between the treads, are you worn down to those? IF you have any weird issues you may want to get an aligment before hurting a new set of tires. A really good alignment shop can look at your tires and set your car up for maximum tire life instead of maximum performance.

If you buy tires and are not worried about all out performance, look for a tire with a high tread life rating and a mileage guarantee. Another option which is what I did, it to switch to smaller wheels like 18's all around or 17's in the front and 18's in the rear. I was able to get wheels an tires for the cost of just stock size tires. When you go to smaller wheels you open up the possibilities to many more brands of tires that are much cheaper. when you go to smaller wheels you are also going to have a little higher sidewall which will improve the ride. Also you will be reducing unsprung weight which also helps the ride.

 

Also depend on your driving style - if you are agressive 20K miles is pretty good.
If you are not "performance" driveing make sure you look for a little bit more of an average tire with longer life.
Kumbho Ecsta SPT are rated 320 tread life and General Exclaim UHP are rated 380
or the Goodyear Eagle F1 All Season would be a very good choice- rated 420. (VERY good choice if you drive in more than just summer - plus there is a $50 rebate running right now)
Good luck.

 

i would be thrilled to get 21000 miles out of a performance tire, i am happy to get 7,000 to 10,000 miles out of a set. i never run them bald like some people do, that is just dangerous.